Monday, JP Morgan Chase Chairman and CEO Jamie Dimon doubled-down on his personal stance against Bitcoin, saying that he believes it to be ‘worthless’ at an Institute of International Finance event, according to CNBC Pro. He further compared Bitcoin to cigarettes, something that is widely known to be bad for a person’s health, yet still regulated and sold on the free market. In that vein, he reiterated that the company plans to give clients access to the market, regardless of his personal feelings.

“Worth is a measure of value. An item is worth whatever somebody else will pay for it. Remember when pet rocks were a booming, multi-million-dollar business? Gary Dahl was selling 100,000 pet rocks a day at his peak. He made $.95 per rock. You might think that a pet rock is worthless because you can go out to your backyard and dig one up. Yet people were willing to pay for them. People believe in Bitcoin. They believe in its value. I applaud Jamie Dimon for giving his customers access to the market, but his characterizing Bitcoin as ‘worthless’ is factually incorrect. It’s trading at over $50,000,” opined Richard Gardner, CEO of Modulus, a US-based developer of ultra-high-performance trading and surveillance technology that powers global equities, derivatives, and digital asset exchanges.

“Jamie doesn’t like Bitcoin, and that’s okay. But, saying that Bitcoin is worthless is akin to saying that coffee futures are worthless because you don’t understand how people could ever pour the stuff down their gullets each morning --- or that you are fundamentally opposed to caffeine. And, yes, it is exactly as silly as it sounds. This isn’t a debate on whether Jamie’s opinion on the long-term prospects for Bitcoin is right or wrong --- and we could have that discussion. But, this is altogether different. This is a matter of fact and fiction, and, as of Monday when he made the statement, Jamie was selling fiction,” Gardner said.

“Like Ronald Reagan said, ‘facts are stubborn things.’ The facts are in, and Jamie isn’t even close to accurate. One of the problems that cryptocurrencies have faced is the sheer volume of misinformation which is spreading about them. And not just from the Twittersphere. From major CEOs, from congressmen, from thought leaders. Then, on the other end of the spectrum, you have crypto ‘advocates’ like John McAfee propping up certain cryptocurrencies for kickbacks. Neither is good for the industry. The industry is built on the back of some of the most innovative technologies we’ve seen since the dawn of the internet. Regardless of your thoughts on Bitcoin, the technology is sound, here to stay, and completely transformative,” Gardner said.

Modulus is known throughout the financial technology segment as a leader in the development of ultra-high frequency trading systems and blockchain technologies. Over the past twenty years, the company has built technology for the world’s most notable exchanges, with a client list which includes NASA, NASDAQ, Goldman Sachs, Merrill Lynch, JP Morgan Chase, Bank of America, Barclays, Siemens, Shell, Yahoo!, Microsoft, Cornell University, and the University of Chicago.

“There are places across the globe --- old mill towns that have never quite rebounded economically, certain population centers in major economic decline, developing economies, and so many other areas. They need to rebuild their economies and, for them, paying attention to the financial tech sector could diversify their economic strength and promote long-term viability. We are at the dawn of the digital assets movement. They aren’t going anywhere. Especially as CBDCs are beginning to rise. We’re moving towards digital currencies fast. And the pandemic’s acceleration of financial digitization has only added fuel to the fire. We must end the misinformation era,” Gardner said.